


Bonding

by MommaUrsa



Category: Batman and Robin (Comics), Red Hood and the Outlaws
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-02
Updated: 2013-03-02
Packaged: 2017-12-04 01:22:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 957
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/704858
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MommaUrsa/pseuds/MommaUrsa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After deciding to spend more time around the manor, Jason finds himself growing closer to the runt.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Bonding

               Jason had not expected to find the request to return, but he sure as hell had not thought he would actually go back. He refused to stay (he still had Roy and Kori), but he was convinced to try and prove himself. Besides, it meant he could visit Alfred.

               He did not stay at the manor, but he did visit when he had business in Gotham. He refused to admit that it was to see anyone but Alfred. He was not afraid to admit that he missed the old butler, and if the man had not also requested that he visited more often, he may have ignored Bruce much longer than he did.

               Most of his visits ended with him not even seeing Bruce. He spent most of his time chatting and being insulted by the little demon. Damian, when he was not allowed on patrol, seemed to enjoy being a pest. Jason though the kid’s attempts to get rid of him were cute, but annoying. He could only handle the brat’s rude mouth for so long. He never remembered being  _this_  bad when he was younger, and did not understand why they could tolerate the kid.

               “They shouldn’t trust you,” Damian huffed as he glared at the television screen. He scowled at the rumbling controller in his small hands. “You shouldn’t be here.”

               Jason smirked as he got a headshot. He watched Damian’s character collapse on the screen. “You’re just mad that you’re losing, brat,” he snorted.

               Damian shot the older man a glare, and then cursed when the man shot him again. Jason smacked the back of the kid’s head. “Language, kid,” he chastised. “Don’t want Alfred thinking I taught you that.”

               Damian was seething beside Jason, until he finally managed to shoot the man. He cracked a small, smug smirk. Jason glanced down to see the expression before smirking at it. “Good job, brat.”

               Damian froze at the praise. His smirk quickly became a scowl as he looked up to meet the older man’s gaze. The confusion was visible on his face, as if he could not decide whether he did or did not like being praised by the older man. He finally scoffed, set his controller down, and then scurried off to brood in his room.

               That had been the last time they played any of the video games when Jason visited. Instead, the child decided it was only safe to be around him when he took smoking breaks. Alfred had strict rules about smoking in the cave, and Jason was not about to incur the wrath of the butler, not that he wanted to disrespect the man in the first place.

               Jason leaned back on the railing of the balcony as he stared down at the scowling brat. Damian had his hood pulled up as he attempted to brood, but the pout-like scowl hardly looked menacing. In a few years, when he lost the baby fat, Jason knew he would become intimidating, but it only succeeded in making him look like a spoiled brat.

               Jason exhaled slowly. Trails of white smoke drifted upward in the cold air. His teal eyes narrowed when he realized the kid was being quitter than usual. There had not been a single remark about his smoking habit being disgusting, and how it would only bring his second death faster.

               He nudged the kid with the toe of his boot. “Brat,” he growled during an exhale, forcing more smoke to drift up into the air. He pulled the cigarette out from between his lips before flicking the ash over the edge of the balcony. “Are you trying to mimic Bruce, because you’re doing a piss-poor job at it.”

               Damian directed his glare toward Jason. His blue eyes narrowed and his nostrils flared with his irritated exhale. “ _No_ , but if I did, father would still be unreasonable,” he snarled with a scowl.

               Jason’s brow shot up as he dropped the butt of his cigarette to the concrete below. He crushed it beneath his boot, and then kicked it under the railing, and over the side. He crouched down next to the kid, and then tugged Damian’s hood down. “Look, kid,” he sighed. “Your dad has always been, and will always be, an ass.”

               Damian tilted his head back so he could look the older man in the eye. “He doesn’t listen,” he grumbled before averting his gaze. “Tt.”

               Jason shoved Damian’s hood down over his eyes. “He never has, kid. Don’t think you’re the only one dealing with that shit.” He nudged the kid’s head. “The best advice Goldie ever gave me was to talk to him. Bruce was never good at listening.”

               Damian made a noise that sounded like a growl as he slowly pulled the hood back. “Grayson is never around anymore,” he grumbled, and Jason swore he saw the kid look almost sad. Damian’s brows had knitted together and he refused to look at the older man.

               Jason let out an exaggerated sigh. “Brat,” he growled, and then snatched the phone from Damian’s pocket. He swatted at the kid’s hands when the brat tried to snatch it back. Jason fiddled with the phone, and then tossed it onto the kid’s lap. “Don’t abuse that number, but if Goldie isn’t around, I probably am.”

               Damian stared at the phone in his lap. He pursed his lips, and then slowly tucked it away in his pocket. “Tt,” he spat, nose wrinkling. He refused to look up at the man, and instead stared down at his hands.

               Jason ruffled Damian’s hair as he stood up. “Alfred was cooking something. I think it’s done, kid,” he stated before heading back into the manor. Damian followed closely behind his older brother.


End file.
